Playing Along
by ChimericalParoxysm
Summary: Another Rita Skeeter article hits the press with some interesting repercussions.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: In response to Paris in December's Pick-A-Plot Contest. My plot prompt was: "It is revealed to the wizarding public that Severus and Harry are in a relationship. The papers are wild with speculation, but they're not actually together, as it's just a rumor, but now that the story's out there, one or both of them is determined to play along and see what happens."

* * *

"What the bloody hell is this?" Harry slammed the paper onto the table of Grimmauld's kitchen.

Hermione craned her neck around his arm to get a good look at the front page of the Prophet, and promptly fell back into her seat giggling.

"Oi, what is it?" Ron lifted the paper and scanned the article, his face growing increasingly green. He finally threw it back onto the table, scowling intensely. "How are you _laughing_?"

"Oh! It's just... Harry. And Severus. And the sex!" she choked out.

A sooty Ginny entered the kitchen bearing a gleeful expression and her own copy of the Prophet. "Oh good!" she exclaimed, "You've seen it, too." She and Hermione glanced at each other and both burst out laughing.

By the time they calmed themselves, Harry was staring blankly at the floor, and Ron was pacing furiously, his face still rather green. Every now and then he would stop, shake his head madly, and then resume his determined crossing of the room. Each time he did this, Ginny and Hermione would giggle all over again, knowing he was trying to shake the visual from his head.

Neither of their Hogwarts relationships had subsisted—Ginny and Harry had never gotten back together after the war, and Ron and Hermione had quite quickly realised they weren't meant for more than friendship. Ron and Padma had a wary sort of relationship going on, and Ginny was seeing _someone_, though she wouldn't say who. Hermione knew it was Draco of course, but Ginny thought she was being supremely stealthy about the entire thing. At any rate, the trio was living together at Grimmauld Place, and Ginny was still at the Burrow, and they had long ago overcome their post-dating awkwardness.

"Alright! I've got it!" Ron announced suddenly, calling all their attention to his decisive form. "First, Hermione forces Skeeter to write a retraction, yeah? Then, we force her into her bug form, and lock her in an airtight container, charmed unbreakable, and bury her in the Forbidden Forest!"

Even Harry laughed at this.

"I say if Ms. Skeeter _wants _a story, we _give_ her a story," came a silky voice from the doorway. Hermione let out a small 'eep' and then shared an admiring glance with Ginny. Severus visited on occasion, and Molly had long ago wrangled him into attending Weasley family dinners. With the war safely over, and having emerged from the sunless dungeons, he was actually rather handsome—though the nose was still a bit tricky to get past.

"What sort of story?" Harry asked suspiciously.

"Yeah, what kind of story?" Ron echoed pointlessly.

Severus swallowed his exasperation. "I propose we play along."

Ron and Harry shouted in protest, and even Ginny seemed sceptical, but Hermione was nodding pensively. "It's probably the best plan of action," she confirmed, "Let me explain!" she added hastily before Ron could murder her on the spot. Harry was stark white.

"Look at it this way. Homosexuality is not the issue here, right?" No one was quite sure why this was such an important fact to establish, and Harry narrowed his eyes at her. She wouldn't… Would she? But she didn't, and just continued in her explanation and so he leaned back, slightly relieved, and listened.

"The wizarding world is fairly accepting of it—particularly in pureblood circles—so that's not the real scandal here. The scandal is that A) Harry Potter is no longer our most eligible bachelor, and B) that he's been taken by the brooding potions professor whom everyone loves to hate and cast aspersions upon. Agreed?" Everyone nodded slowly. "And we all know the way these things work. Harry and Severus can protest and deny until their throats grow hoarse; no one's every going to believe them, and Harry will lose his credibility and his popularity with the public."

"So we spin it our way," Ginny stepped in, seeing where this was going. "They play along, showing that they're not afraid to hide their true colours, the scandal fades, and Skeeter loses her power, Harry maintains his, and Severus gains a certain credibility in the eyes of the public."

"Precisely," Severus concluded.

"No bloody way. There's got to be something else. _Anything_ else."

"Oh sod off, Ronald. What do you know, anyway?" Ginny retorted.

Harry heaved a sigh. "What would this require?"

Severus sneered a little. "A little hand holding, perhaps. A few public appearances. Then we may 'break it off' and move on with life."

The Boy Who Had Survived turned a pained look on to his most trusted advisor. "This is really the best way, 'Mione?"

Her smile was sympathetic, but her eyes still sparkled with amusement at the general situation. "Well, I suppose we could go with Ron's plan…"

His grin was more of a grimace really, and he nodded reluctantly. "Alright then, I suppose we should get planning."


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Here's the second (and final) installment. Hope you enjoy :)

* * *

It had been a week since the appearance of "The Article"—Hermione and Ginny still giggled every time it was mentioned. The public had been crazy about the situation—switching continuously between outraged that the Prophet would print such trash, and outraged that Harry would hide his relationships from the public (for the obviously had the right to know), and outraged that anyone would judge him for his sexual orientation, and outraged that The Boy Who Lived was no longer eligible to the many witches and the select few wizards who had held some tenuous hope for their future happily ever after.

They were all quite thankful that they'd elected to leave Grimmauld Place under such strenuous security measures. Severus hadn't been nearly as lucky, and Spinner's End and The Burrow were both regularly accosted with news reporters, paparazzi, and members of the nosey general populace. Ginny herself was harried at the Prophet by other reporters, but she tended to be on location and missed the most of it.

There had also, of course, been follow-up articles and editorials rife with speculation and scandal. Maybe they were already sleeping together when Harry was a student! Perhaps they had found solace in one another after the war! Or maybe Severus had Harry under the Imperius curse—or a love potion! To top it all off, Ginny and Hermione not only laughed riotously over these each day, but they also rather enjoyed coming up with their own lurid scenarios.

And today was day one of Plan "Play Along," and was therefore time to face the public. Harry's hands were sweating horribly. His mind was foggy, his cheeks were flushed, and his hair was an absolute disaster.

"Yet another dreadful habit you picked up from your father, Potter."

"Harry," he corrected absently.

Severus arched his eyebrow, as he always did, but said nothing.

"Ready, Harry?" Hermione asked softly.

"Stop treating him like a little boy. This is hardly the end of the world, Hermione, and you're coddling him." She merely scowled at him like he was a complete idiot and returned her gaze to Harry, nudging him gently when he didn't respond.

"I'll be fine, 'Mione. Don't worry about it."

"Sure he will be! Besides, they're both quite dashing. All the women are going to be thinking about is what a loss it all is," Ginny piped up from the stairs.

Severus was taken aback. "Dashing," he scoffed.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Sure. You've got that dark, mysterious allure, you know? No one's really sure what side you were on or what you had to do. You keep to yourself and are rarely seen in public. You're the penultimate tortured soul."

"Plus, your hair isn't as greasy," Harry added before he realised what he was saying. "Uhm. Oops." Rather than blushing, all the colour drained from his face, and Hermione hugged him tightly.

"Just _breathe_, Harry. It'll be alright. If all else fails, you can apparate, remember?" she grinned, but there was still a tinge of concern on her face. Even Ginny was beginning to wonder why the bloody hell Hermione was so concerned. I mean, the boy had defeated Voldemort, obviously he'd survive a little homosexual handholding. There had to be more to it. Had Severus done something that made his presence unbearable?

The two had bonded after the war—Harry visiting Severus regularly at Saint Mungos where he was recovering from Nagini's attack. It had been a long time, which had added up to a lot of visits, and both of them seemed to have undergone some emotional healing by the time Severus was released. They still held a certain distance from each other, but an amicable one, with joking and debating and the holding of serious conversations. Something was definitely going on for this to be such a big deal. Ginny shook her head as they apparated to Diagon Alley. She was going to get to the bottom of it—today, if possible.

Severus extended his hand to Harry, slightly awkwardly, as they appeared outside Gringotts, but Harry merely stared at it as though it were a life sentence in Pre-War Azkaban. Hermione nudged him sharply—no one had noticed them yet, but that wouldn't last long—and with a sigh he dropped his hand into Severus'. Hermione bit her lip for a moment then, with a shake of her head, linked her arm through Ginny's as they set off for their publicly demonstrative shopping excursion. Ron was noticeably absent, as he absolutely refused to be a part of something "so revolting." They figured this would just add intrigue and dramatic tension to their performance.

After about a half hour of public accosting, and reporters', "Tell us the whole story, Mr. Potter. Was it his dark mystery that first sparked the flame? Or was there a tender and gradual bonding?" Ginny finally got fed up with Hermione's winces and not-so-furtive glances, and pulled her to the side. "What the bloody hell is going on, 'Mione?"

Hermione sighed heavily. "I'm being ridiculous, aren't I?" she let out a self-deprecating laugh, "I'm just… I can't help but feel that this is going to end _really_ badly."

Ginny resisted throwing her hands up in exasperation. "How badly could it end? Worst Case Scenario A: no one believes their act, and it becomes obvious that Rita was lying anyway. This doesn't seem likely, however, because they're acting perfectly normally now—chatting each other's ears off about potions, even in spite of all the insanity. Ay?" Hermione nodded reluctantly, unable to resist a grin as a fangirl dropped in front of Harry and confessed her undying love and devotion.

"Right," Ginny continued after regaining her composure. "Worst Case Scenario B: everyone believes their act, but then doesn't believe they actually broke up. In which case we're exactly back where we started, and we were _laughing_ about it."

"I—You know what? You're right!" Hermione plastered a smile on her face. "I just need to relax, and stop worrying. Thanks, Gin."

"You're lying," Ginny announced. "What're you hiding? And since _when_ do you keep secrets from me?" She didn't sound hurt, and Hermione was relieved, but she _did_ sound frustrated.

She sighed. "It's not my secret to tell. I'm sorry, honestly. And before you get upset with Harry, I haven't known for very long, and I only found out… _everything_… this morning."

Ginny managed to accept this, but only barely, as it added an enormous amount of fuel to her curious fire. She settled for watching the pair closely until they returned to Grimmauld late in the afternoon. As soon as they walked through the door, Harry and Severus dropped each other's hands and took a big step away from each other, but Ginny thought she noticed something, something that seemed to concur with her other observations throughout the day. _Could it—? Nah. But maybe…_ She grinned.

"Well, that was… interesting, but I'll be on my way now. Good afternoon Ginny, Hermione, Harry." He nodded at them each and took his leave. The door clicked shut behind him.

"You like Severus." She wasn't sure, but the certainty in her tone said, in no uncertain terms, that she was, and Harry and Hermione looked at each other worriedly.

"_Me?_" Hermione exclaimed, covering poorly—she always was a dreadful actress. "I rather think _you're_ more likely to harbour such an absurd crush, Ginny."

"No, not you." Ginny rolled her eyes. "You're gay, aren't you, Harry?" It was maybe a little blunt, she considered, but she was a straightforward sort of girl.

Harry shot a panicked look at Hermione who punched him lightly in the shoulder. "Oh just man _up_, Harry!"

Ginny giggled at the hint of confirmation. "This is _so_ perfect!"

"I don't see how," Harry muttered uncomfortably. "This entire situation is less than brilliant."

The door eased back open, and there was Severus, bearing a shell-shocked expression no one had ever before seen upon his face.

"Oh bloody hell." Harry covered his face with his hands. "I'm going to bloody well kill Rita Skeeter."

xXx

Harry somehow managed to escape up to his room, and was followed shortly thereafter by one Severus Snape, whose expression was heavily masked. Hermione strode into the kitchen. "I'm making a brew, would you like one?" Ginny rolled her eyes. Hermione always found something to keep her hands occupied when she was worried.

"Sure, sounds great, 'Mione. But, as I was saying, this is perfect!"

Hermione looked at her penetratingly, tea temporarily forgotten. "What do you know that I don't?"

Ginny grinned, eager to get to the gossip. "Well, I was _sworn_ to secrecy, but it hardly counts _now_, right? Well," she paused, building the dramatic tension. "I once caught Severus Snape kissing this well-dressed man down Diagon Alley! He's not straight, he's _bisexual_!" She revelled in Hermione's answering gasp. "I _know!_ So this is perfect! He and Harry can hook up, and it'll be _so_ cute."

"Assuming Severus, you know, likes Harry back. I mean, there's a _huge_ age gap, Gin."

Ginny scoffed. "Well, we'll see."

Hermione resumed the tea-making, and Ginny fished some biscuits out of the cupboard.

"How long have you know?"

"That Harry's gay? A few months. That he's in love with Severus? He told me this morning. He was in a right panic about today."

Ginny mulled this over for a bit, trying desperately hard not to run away with herself and plan their entire future together.

"Neville's seeing Susan Bones, did you hear?" Hermione asked after a while, setting the tea on the table.

"Mhm, I saw her last week during an interview for the Prophet. She was all glowing-in-love."

"And Ginny, she's seeing Draco Malfoy, did you hear about that one?" she added casually.

Ginny choked on her tea. "How long have you known?"

"Oh, not too long. I finally pieced it all together about a month ago, Miss 'since when do you keep secrets from me?' Care to dish?" Ginny sheepishly, but eagerly obliged.

About an hour later, Hermione glanced at the clock, paused mid-sentence, and grinned. "What do you suppose they're doing up there?"

Ginny smiled mischievously. "Oh, who knows? Picking daisies perhaps."

"Who's picking daisies?"

"Oh! Ron!" Hermione laughed nervously. "Didn't hear you come in. How are you?"

Ron appeared oblivious, unsurprisingly, to the tension in the room. "Good. Great, actually." His smile punctuated the statement. "Padma and I were actually wondering whether you lot would like to go out to dinner with us. Assuming Snape's gone home?"

"That's an excellent idea," Ginny rushed, "Harry and Severus are, er—"

"Planning!" Hermione supplied in a slightly high pitched voice.

"Right, planning. So we were going to be by ourselves for supper anyway."

His face scrunched in disgust. "Well, his loss. I'm going to grab a shower before we—"

"No, no!" They weren't quite willing to risk Ron's presence upstairs. Who knew what might happen?

"We're starved."

"Exactly. It would be better if we went now, really."

"If you don't mind, of course."

"Or even if you do," Ginny said firmly, grabbing Hermione and Ron and leading them outside.

xXx

When they got home from dinner, Harry was sitting on the couch, a dazed look on his face but appearing otherwise perfectly fine.

"Had a good evening, Harry?" Ginny asked slyly.

His bashful grin said it all.

"Oi, am I missing something?" Ron asked confusedly.

"More than likely, Ron."

He ignored his sister's slight, merely shaking his head, and headed upstairs for his long-postponed shower.

Ginny and Hermione dropped eagerly onto the couch on either side of him, and he flushed slightly.

"Oh, c'mon, Harry. Let's hear it!" Hermione prompted.

"Yeah, give us all the juicy details!"

"Mhm, like, does he kiss as dreamily as we imagine he must?"

"And what all besides kissing did you _do_?" Ginny waggled her eyebrows suggestively.

Harry's grin grew mischievous. "I never kiss and tell."

The two girls watched him leave, filled with an intense disappointment. "You know, he's an ungrateful sort, isn't he?" Ginny griped.

"Ungrateful?"

"Yeah! I mean, if it weren't for us, he and Sevvy Pooh would never even have hooked up in the first place!"

Hermione giggled. "Please, don't _ever_ call him that again."

"Harry and Sev-vy sittin' in a tree!"

"K-I-S-S-I-N-G!"

"First comes luuuurve!"

"Then comes— Wait… Can you even _get_ married to another man?"

"Oh who cares, 'Mione? It's just a song."

Harry smiled as he heard their voices drifting up through the floor panels of the old house. Even if they were being awfully silly about the whole thing, he was rather glad they weren't fleeing him in mortification. Maybe everything was going to be quite alright…

"Then comes Sevvy with the ba-by carriage!"


End file.
